The Heart of the Pokemon
by ThornWolf the Loyal
Summary: A girl with an uncanny ability to understand Pokemon starts on her own adventure. Now a dark force that she is related to rises and threatens the very existence of Pokemon and people. Will she and her friends be able to stop it?
1. Chapter 1

Along with being a Warriors fan, I love Pokemon

**Along with being a Warriors fan, I love Pokemon. Always have, always will. So, I decided to finally write a story about it. Now, I'm going to be doing a mix between worlds. For the most part, this is going to take place in Sinnoh, but it will feature Pokemon from all over the place. Why? BECAUSE I LIKE THEM! ('Scuse.) I might also add in some themes from other games. In a way, this is going to be a culmination of all the games I own. Wish me luck!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Pokemon, but I want a Piplup…and a Mudkip…and a…oh, who am I kidding, I want them all! The only flames I'll allow are those from Fire types!**

Chapter 1BZZZZZZZT! SMACK! Groan

"Pip pip piplup!" cried a little blue Pokemon. He jumped up onto the bed and stared down into his human's face. The human opened her eyes and stared up into Piplup's giant eyes.

"Pip, tell me again why I set my alarm so early," the girl groaned again and swung her feet down onto the floor. Instantly, she yelped and jumped up onto the bed again. Looking down, she saw that the rug was crumpled up in the corner of her room. She glared at Pip. "Every morning you do this. Why?"

"Pip."

"You've got a point…Let's go."

The girl put her feet, carefully, onto the cold floor and trudged across her room. She opened her drawer and threw on her favorite outfit. Navy blue tank top, black pants, brown boots. She ran a brush through her fizzy mouse-brown hair a few times (four to be exact) before pulling it into a loose ponytail.

"Pip, where's my cap?" she looked down to see her little blue friend come stumbling towards her, the black cap covering up his eyes. She pulled it off of him, patted him on the head, and put the cap on.

Finally, she knelt down onto the floor and felt for the loose board. She pried it up, reveling a small hole. In it were little trinkets of all sorts, most of them of little value. She picked up a little box and opened it up. She carefully took out a small gemstone that was set into a silver chain. She held it up, allowing the light to reflect off of it. The stone was a milky white color in the shape of a crescent moon. She put it on, putting the stone inside her shirt. She snagged an old black jacket and headed downstairs.

She walked into the kitchen and sighed. Once more, Megan was in the basement. No doubt she had been there all night. The girl grabbed and apple and started downstairs with Pip following her. The instant she stepped onto the floor, Megan looked up and adjusted her glasses. "Julie, come here, quick!" Without waiting for a response, she grabbed Julie's wrist, causing her to drop the apple, and dragged her to the table where she had been sitting.

The apple rolled to where Pip was sitting. He squeaked happily and bit into it.

"What's going on?" Julie asked, surprised. She looked at the table. Under a heat lamp was a small egg. It was rocking back and forth violently.

"It's about to hatch! Think of it as an early birthday present!" Megan said excitedly.

"Meg-"

Don't talk, just watch. When it hatches, I want it to imprint onto you. I'm too old to be a trainer, but you've got your whole life to train it!"

"Meg, you're only thirty."

"Hush, listen to you're mother," Megan said sharply.

"_Adopted_ mother," Julie said with a hint of bitterness in her voice.

"So what if you're adopted? Besides, I have to stay here and continue my research. I can't go traveling the world with all of this work to do…Oooh, look! It's hatching!" Megan was now jumping up and down.

Indeed, a fragment of the egg fell off. It was being pushed apart by the creature inside it. They could hear it grunting from the effort. Pip, having finished his apple, toddled over to the table to find out what the two humans found so interesting. He started jumping up, trying to see what it was on the tall table. Suddenly, with one last violent shudder, the egg fell apart. Out stumbled a dog-like Pokemon. It shook its head and looked up into Julie's eyes. Then it's tail started to wag and it barked at the girl.

"A Poochyena? You mean Black Dog and Mischief are now parents?" Julie asked. She stretched out her hand and scratched the Poochyena behind the ears. It yipped happily and leaned into her hand.

"Yup. But even though it's their pup, you're going to be its mother. It's imprinted on you. By the way, it's a she." Megan tried to pet the black Pokemon, but it growled and tried to bite her hand. "Give it a name," she said, completely unaffected to being rejected by the Pokemon.

"Alright. I think I'll call her Chena."

"Chena?"

"Yeah, like Jenna, just with a 'ch' instead of a 'j'."

"Alright, I can see that. So, when are you going to set off on your own journey?" Megan asked.

Julie picked up Chena and set her on the floor. Pip walked up Chena and looked down at her. Chena looked up at him. "You're awfully anxious to get rid of me," Julie said, leaning back against the table while watching the Pokemon.

"Oh, come on. Don't be like that. I'm not trying to get rid of you, but I think that you need to get out and see the rest of the world, that's all."

They watched the Pokemon in silence. Pip started to growl at Chena, who returned the favor. Julie saw the fight that was about to break out and jumped in, grabbing Pip. Megan picked up Chena, but the two still wouldn't stop growling at each other.

"Julie, grab the pokeball!" Julie quickly did as she was told and held it up. She looked from it to Chena and back to it. "Just call Chena back to it!"

"Here it goes…Chena, return!" Julie ordered. Instantly, the pokeball opened up and Chena vanished into it in a blaze of red light.

"That was fun. Pip, calm down!" Julie set the wriggling Piplup onto the floor. "Pip, what's wrong with you?"

Pip turned away from her, his wings crossed.

"Pip, please don't be like this," the girl begged. Finally, Pip turned and looked at her hard.

"Pip. Piplup. Pip," he said, accentuating his words.

"Oh, Pip, you're my friend still. You always will be. In fact, you're my best friend. Just because I have another Pokemon doesn't change that. Now, come here," Julie said gently.

Pip stared at her for a few seconds before jumping into her arms, all his jealousy forgotten. "Pip, question. What would you say to going on a trip?" Pip nodded his head so fast she was afraid it would fall off. She cuddled him before looking up at Megan. "Alright, you talked me into it. I'll go on this adventure of yours."

"Yes! Oh, you and Pip will have so much fun. Here, take Chena with you. It's always good to have another Pokemon with you. If you go to Sandgem Town, you'll find a store with all the things that you'll need. Oh, I'm so excited for you! Think of all the friends you'll make!" She grabbed Julie in a bear hug.

"Great, just great," Julie growled to herself as Pip danced around them.

--

"Perfect." Julie stood just outside of Twin Leaf Town. "What was I thinking?" She looked down at Pip who was happily walking through the grass. "I guess that's what I was thinking," she said, smiling to herself. She took out a pokeball and released Chena. "Play nice," she said simply to the two Pokemon. Pip and Chena exchanged glances of contempt, but neither of them attacked the other and instead went their own ways through the grass. Julie kept watch over them both.

While she was watching Chena playing with a leaf, she heard Pip's terrified scream. Whirling, she saw her dearest Pokemon racing towards her with a flock of Starly flying behind him.

"PIIIIIP!"


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: I own no Pokemon, but I do speak and see Pokemon… Disclaimer: I own no Pokemon, but I do speak and see Pokemon…

Chapter 2

Julie's mind was racing. Pip was in trouble, and she had no idea what she was supposed to do. Then it clicked. _Battle._ "Pip! Use…" _What attacks does he know?_ "Uh…use, uh…uh… Bubble!"

Pip whirled around, opened his mouth, and fired off bubbles at the Starly. A few fell back, but the others kept coming.

"Pip, Bubble again! Chena! Use Tackle on the Starly!" The Poochyena obeyed the command and landed a few attacks, but soon the Starly figured out how to avoid the attacks by flying above them. Still, the attack combo was working. The Starly were too busy avoiding attacks to land any of their own on the Pokemon.

That is until Pip ran out of power. He was forced to start using physical attacks, but the Starly avoided the attacks and started pecking at Julie's Pokemon!

The young trainer raced towards her Pokemon and scooped both of them up and started running. She dodged the attacks as she ran. Paying more attention to the Pokemon than to where she was going, she tripped and was sent sprawling onto the ground. She held her Pokemon close to her body in hopes of shielding them from the inevitable attacks.

"Char, use Ember!"

Julie glanced up to see a boy, dressed in jeans and a dark green t-shirt, call to his Pokemon, a Charmander. Instantly, the red Pokemon blew small flames at the oncoming Starly. Although the attack only hit a few of the Starly, the rest were frightened off by the flames. Soon, they had all vanished.

"Hey, are you and your Pokemon alright?" the boy asked, kneeling down next to Julie.

"I think so. Pip? Chena? You two okay?" Both looked up at her and nodded, but Julie could tell they were in bad shape. "We need to find help." Julie looked up at him. His tussled blonde hair half covered gray eyes.

"Here, this may help." He reached into his red backpack and pulled out two potions and handed them to Julie. "I'm Seth Archer."

"Thanks. Juliana Wolff, but friends call me Julie," Julie answered, taking the potions and quickly using them on Pip and Chena. It helped them, but both still seemed a little out of it.

"Nice to meet you, Julie."

"You're not my friend yet." She recalled Chena back into her pokeball, picked up Pip and started off.

"Pardon?" Seth said, taken aback. Didn't he just help her?

"You're not my friend yet," Julie repeated over her shoulder. Suddenly, she stopped short.

"But I just saved you!" Seth said, jogging to catch up.

"Hold Pip for a second," Julie said, thrusting the Piplup into Seth's arms.

"Pip? That's original for a Piplup," he said, still stinging from her comment.

"And Char is so imaginative for a Charmander?"

"Good point." Seth glanced down at the growling Piplup. "Why am I holding him?" he asked, wondering if Pip would attack him.

"This is why," Julie said, standing up with a small Starly in her arms. "She needs help even more than mine did." The Starly chirped miserably.

"There's a Pokemon Center in Sandgem. Let's go." They hurried the rest of the way to the town, Seth carrying a still growling Pip and Julie cradling the Starly.

Julie bolted into the Clinic and ran up to the counter. "This Starly needs help," she said, panting. Seth stumbled in after her. Julie took Pip from him and held him up for the nurse to see. "And my Piplup needs help, too, and my Poochyena." She fumbled in her bag for Chena's pokeball and put it on the counter as soon as she found it.

The nurse nodded. "Don't worry about them. They'll be just fine." She and two other nurses took the Pokemon and brought them into the infirmary.

Julie sat down in the waiting room, followed by Seth and Char. She sat with her head down. Seth watched her for a moment. "They'll be fine," he said quietly.

Julie looked up at him. "It's my fault. I thought I -we- could do it. And now…I got them hurt…and just as we started our journey!" A small tear rolled down her cheek, which she wiped away angrily. This day was getting better and better. First she gets her friends hurt, and now she was crying in front of a boy!

"Hey, everybody has a tough time when they first start off," Seth said with a weak smile.

Julie returned it. "You know, you're not too bad, Seth."

"Thanks, Juliana."

Julie turned red. "Call me Julie. I was a bit of a jerk earlier. Sorry."

Seth blinked in surprise. "It's okay. But, why did you act like that?"

She turned away. "I'd rather not get into that. I've just always been suspicious around strangers."

"Even ones that help?" Seth asked, raising an eyebrow.

"You don't know what I've been through, okay? Just drop it," Julie answered, sounding irritated.

"What?"

Before anything else could be said, two stretchers rolled into the room by a Chancey and the nurse. On one sat Pip and Chena, who for once weren't growling at each other, and on the other lay the Starly. She raised her head and looked at the girl.

"Pip! Chena!" Julie ran to the stretchers and hugged her Pokemon.

"They're just fine. And with a little rest, your Starly will be okay," the nurse said.

"Thank you, but that's not my Starly," Julie said. "She's a wild Pokemon."

The nurse smiled. "She may be wild, but she certainly knows who helped her," she said, looking down at the Starly. Julie looked down at her as well. It was hopping, a little clumsily, towards her. She looked up and chirped again. Julie gently stroked her little head.

"All of them are ready to go home. You can release the Starly, if you want to that is." The nurse turned and walked away with the Chancey right behind her.

Seth stood up and looked from the Starly to Julie. "You really have a way with them, you know that, right?"

"Should I keep her?"

"I think the decision has already been made for you. That Starly's probably not going to be leaving you any time soon," Seth said.

"Okay. I guess I'll keep her. But Pip's jealous enough that I have Chena. I should probably find Star a pokeball."

"Star?" Seth looked at her, trying hard not to laugh. "Good with Pokemon, lousy with nicknames: Julie Wolff."

"Shut up." Julie did her best to glare at him.

"In all seriousness, there's a Pokemart in town. We could probably pick up everything that we'll need from there."

"Then let's go."


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: The only Pokemon I own are those from the games and a plushie Mudkip

**Disclaimer: The only Pokemon I own are those from the games and a plushie Mudkip.**

Chapter 3

"Hello! How can we help you two today?" The cheerful voice of the Pokemart clerk asked as Julie and Seth entered the room.

Julie glanced at Seth, who nodded. "I would like a five potions, two Paralyze Heals, three Antidotes, and eight pokeballs."

"Certainly is a lot. Preparing for an expedition?" the clerk said, making small talk while collecting everything up.

"Sort of."

"Well, here everything is. That'll be 3000 pokedollars please."

"Here." Julie placed a wad of cash on the counter. The clerk picked it up, looked through it, and then thanked Julie and gave her the bag. She picked it up and walked back to Seth. "Your turn."

"First off, how'd you get the money?"

"A friend gave it to me," Julie said, shrugging. With the few things Megan had been able to provide, she had given Julie a fair amount of money.

"Ookaaay. Second, we're going to need more than that."

"What do you think we're going to need? Wait, we?"

"If we're going on a journey, we're going to need camping stuff. Not every town's going to have a hotel," Seth said matter-of-factly.

"I'm sorry, I'm still hung up on 'we.'"

"Well, why not? You need to learn the ropes about Pokemon, and I could help you with that," Seth said, glancing at the floor. "I think we'd make a great team."

Julie rolled her eyes. "Fine," she sighed. "Get you're stuff."

"You've gotta come too. You need to get your own camping gear because I'm not going to pay for it."

"What ever happened to 'we'd make a great team?'" Seth gave her 'the look.' "Okay, okay. I was just kidding," Julie said, holding up her hands defensively.

Both of them approached the counter. "Hey, we need some camping gear," Seth said.

The clerk shook his head. "I can't provide you with that, but if you visit the lab next door, the Professor might supply you with that if you agree to his terms."

Julie arched and eyebrow. "Terms?"

The clerk chuckled. "Don't worry, it's nothing too drastic. Go talk to him yourselves."

After thanking the clerk, Julie and Seth headed outside. Julie pulled out a pokeball and called Star into it. Then they headed up to the lab.

They pushed open the door and stepped in. A roar of laughter greeted them. "Come in, come in!" laughed an old man. "I'm Professor Rowan. You two must be here to help me out with my project!"

"Well, we were here in hopes of getting some camping gear. We need it if we want to travel through Sinnoh," Julie started only to be cut off by another laugh.

"That's exactly it! I'm working on a Pokedex, a kind of an encyclopedia of Pokemon. I need your help to fill it up. If you help me with my project, I'll supply you with everything you need. So what do you say?" Professor Rowan asked.

"I'm game," Julie said shrugging. "I set off on this journey wondering why. It's good to have a purpose."

"Well, I said I would teach you, so I guess I'm in this too," Seth added.

"That's the spirit!" the professor cried. "Come with me."

--

Fifteen minutes later, Julie and Seth walked out of the lab. Professor Rowan had provided them each with new backpacks, each with enough space for everything they'd need, including a sleeping bag for each of them.

"So, where are we going first?" Julie asked, picking up Pip.

"Hang on." Seth pulled out a map. "Looks like the next place to go would be Jubilife City. From there, we should head to Oreburgh. There's a gym there."

"You're going to challenge a leader?" Julie asked, leaning over to give Char a pat on the head.

"No, you are."

"What?!" Julie stared at Seth.

"You heard me," Seth answered, putting away the map.

"But…But you know I can't do that! I can't even fend off against a flock of Starly!"

"Sure you can. Besides, you were facing off against way too many opponents without any training. By the time we get to Oreburgh, you'll be a great trainer. Plus, you've got Pip," Seth said, starting off.

"How will that help?" Julie asked, hurrying after him.

"Roark uses Rock and Ground types-"

"And Pip is a water type," Julie finished.

Seth looked at her and smiled. "See, I told you. You'll be a great trainer someday."

--

Just before they entered Jubilife City, Seth stopped Julie. "You still haven't had a real battle yet with another trainer. So, I'll show you what it's like."

"Okay…" Julie glanced down at Pip and then back up. "Bring it on!"

"That's exactly what I want to hear! We'll use three Pokemon for this battle, since that's how many we both have." Seth pulled a pokeball off his belt. "Are you ready?"

"You know it!" she said, grabbing one of her own. "Chena, let's go!" The Poochyena stood ready beside her trainer.

"Tad, come on out!" A Lotad appeared in front of Chena. "This match has begun!"

"Chena, Growl!"

"Tad, use Tackle!"

"Chena, get out of the way and return the favor!" Chena swiftly dodged the attack, then spun and slammed into the Lotad. He was knocked aside, but regained his stance, waiting for the next command.

"Tad, Tackle again!" This time, the attack hit Chena full on. She stumbled back.

"Chena, hang in there, Tackle!" Chena hit Tad hard. The Lotad wobbled, then fell. He didn't get up.

"Tad, come back!" Seth recalled his Pokemon. "Low, go!" This time a Taillow entered the battlefield. "Use Peck!"

The Taillow flew in and hit Chena with its beak. Chena stumbled, but stayed standing.

"Chena, try a Tackle!" The Poochyena tried to follow its trainer's command, but just like with the Starly, Low flew out of the way of the attack.

"Peck again!" Chena wasn't fast enough to dodge the attack. She crumpled under the blow.

"Chena! You did good, now return!" Julie's gaze fell on Pip. She considered briefly sending him out, but changed her mind. She grabbed the other pokeball. "Let's go Star!"

"Low, Peck!"

Star blinked at the oncoming Pokemon. Just before Low hit her, she flew out of the way with incredible speed. _Well, she's fast enough…Let's try it!_ "Star, use Quick Attack!"

Star wheeled in midair and dived at Low. She slammed the Pokemon into the ground. Low twitched, then laid still. "Low, come back!" Seth put away the pokeball. "You're pretty good for being a rookie, but lets see how you do against Char!" The fire type Pokemon stepped out into the field.

"Star, nice job. Come back!" She nodded to Pip. "Now's your time to shine. Let's do it, Pip!"

"Char, Ember!" The Charmander blew flames at Pip.

"Pip, douse them with Bubble!" Pip's Bubble collided with the Ember attack, instantly putting the flames out. "Good work, now use Bubble again!" This time the attack hit Char. With a small roar, Char fell backwards and landed in a small heap.

Seth ran forward and picked up Char. He looked up at Julie with a small smile. "This battle is over. Juliana Wolff is the victor!"

Pip leapt up into the air and then started to march about, clearly enjoying his victory. Julie nodded to him but ran to where Seth was holding Char. "Is he okay?"

Seth nodded. "I just need to get him to a Pokemon Center. Then he'll be just fine." Seth stood up and started walking towards Jubilife City. Julie picked up Pip and followed after Seth.

Minutes later they were sitting in the reception room, waiting for Seth's Pokemon and Star to be released. Seth looked at Julie. "You have an interesting knack with Pokemon."

Julie glanced up from where she was watching Pip then returned her gaze to her partner. "Megan was always researching something about Pokemon. It used to be how they evolved, but she settled in Twinleaf after she adopted me. Now she studies Pokemon breeding. That's how I got Chena. I guess I just grew up around them."

In his exploration of the Center, Pip had wandered too close to a Loudred. The larger Pokemon growled and took a menacing step towards the Piplup. Pip leapt up and scurried back to Julie, diving into her arms. The Loudred's trainer looked up and smiled apologetically. "Sorry," he said, "he's not very fond of others."

Julie nodded with a tight but understanding smile. Seth leaned over to her and whispered, "If you want, there's a school in town. Why don't you stop by there and pick up a few more tips about being a trainer."

Julie looked at him. "What about Chena?"

Seth waved a hand dismissively. "I'll get her for you when the nurse comes out. Go on, you might learn something useful."

"Okay," Julie sighed as she stood up. "Come on, Pip. We're going to school."

**Quick A/N time. Hopefully my battle sequence was understandable. I probably won't be doing that again unless for an important battle, like against gym leaders or something like that. Any little side of the road battles I'll leave out. Please R&R!**


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4 Chapter 4

Julie stood outside of a large building. She knelt down next to Pip and whispered, "Behave yourself. Don't go wandering off this time, okay?"

"Piplup," the little Pokemon looked up at her sincerely.

"I'll take your word. Don't make me regret trusting you." Julie stood up and walked into the building with Pip following obediently behind her.

As she walked into the school, the teacher looked up from a book. "Welcome," she said, placing the book on a desk where two students were sitting. "Did you come to enroll?"

"Um, actually, no. I'm a new trainer and I-"

"Hey, so am I!" cried one boy, looking up from his notebook.

"Hush, Tommy," the teacher said. Turning back to Julie, she smiled. "Go on."

"Well, I was wondering if I could just read up on a couple of things…" Julie finished, looking uncertain of herself.

"Of course you can!" the teacher said brightly. "There are plenty of books you can look through. Take your time."

Julie nodded her thanks and made her way to one of the bookshelves. Picking out a few books, she carried them back to the desk and sat down.

"Hey, I'm Tommy," whispered the boy to Julie.

"And I'm Marie," added the girl. "Aren't you a little old to be here?"

Julie, offended, was about to snap back at the girl when Pip pecked at her leg. She glanced down at her Pokemon. "Piplup pip," he said sternly. Julie leaned over and whispered to him, "Sorry. Thanks."

"Oh, what a cute Piplup!" Marie cried as she knelt down next to him.

"Really? Let me see!" Tommy said just as excited as he dropped down next to Marie.

Pip squeaked as hid behind Julie's leg. "It's okay, you can say hi," she said quietly to him. He had remembered what she said and was determined not to stray away from her, but she knew Pip wanted to see the children.

Pip hopped out and waddled over to them, enjoying all the attention he was getting.

A girl, slightly older than the two children who were attempting to get Pip to talk to them, walked out from a back room with a pokeball in her hand. "You're a trainer?" she asked, eyeing Julie.

Julie looked up and nodded. "Why?"

"If you are, I'd like to challenge you to a one-on-one battle." She threw the pokeball up, and from it came an Abra. "Think you're up to it?"

Julie looked down at Pip. He was no longer paying any attention to Marie and Tommy and was instead focused on the Abra. "I think were ready," Julie said, turning back to the girl.

She headed outside, followed by the girl. The school children tagged along with the permission of their teacher.

Minutes later, Pip stood and watched triumphantly as the Abra was recalled back to its pokeball.

"You're not too shabby," the girl said as she handed Julie her prize money. She turned and walked silently to the Pokemon center. Marie and Tommy, after giving her their congratulations, went back into the schoolhouse.

Before the teacher followed her students in, she turned to Julie. "I don't think you need any more studying here. You're good enough to excel at anything you and your Pokemon set your minds to. But feel free to come back and visit anytime."

As soon as everyone was gone from the street, Julie knelt down and hugged Pip. "I'm so proud of you!" she whispered to him. Pip in reply wrapped his little wings around her neck as best he could and hugged her back.

"And _I'm_ proud of _you_." Julie squeaked and looked around to see Seth standing behind her. He held out a pokeball. "Here's Chena, perfectly healed."

Julie took it from him and reattached it to her belt. "So, I guess were heading to Oreburgh?" she said, embarrassed to have another person see her behaving so, well, nicely.

"Yup. I think you stand a pretty good chance at beating the gym leader," Seth said as he started off to the exit that led to Rt. 203.

"Why don't you challenge the leader?" Julie asked, sounding more accusatory than she meant to. Pip walked along beside her, a little surprised by his trainer's sudden change in mood. Still, he knew she did this whenever she was caught in the act of having feelings.

"I'm not that into Pokemon battling."

"Well, I don't enjoy it as much as you think," Julie half growled at him.

Seth looked at her out of the corner of his eye. "You seemed to be having as much fun as Pip."

Julie wrinkled her nose. "Still, why do I have to challenge gyms?"

"Beating gyms means getting Badges, getting Badges means you're good enough to go to other places, and going other places means filling up the Pokedex," Seth said simply.

Julie looked down at Pip. He was staring back up at her, expectant. She remembered how he had changed during the battles, going from a cuddly friend into a confident fighter. He enjoyed the challenge battles presented; heck, he was even pretty good at it. She sighed. "Fine. I'll do the battling, you supply the advice."

"Good girl!" Seth praised. "Look out Oreburgh gym, you're about to meet you're match!"

"Yeah, sure," Julie muttered. She glanced at Pip. He had hopped ahead of them, then doubled back to walk –practically skip- next to Julie. "At least someone's happy about this," she thought with the faintest of smiles.

--

On the way to Oreburgh, Julie focused on training Pip and did a little bit of work with Star, since Seth had told her the next gym leader they would probably face in Eterna City used Grass types. Along the way, she had caught several more Pokemon.

"Seth, trainers are only supposed to have six Pokemon with them, but this Geodude makes seven…" Julie had said uncertainly.

"Wait a second," he said. Just as he finished speaking, the pokeball flashed white and then disappeared, scaring Julie half to death. "Relax! It's been transported to the Pokemon Center. You'll be able to pull him out of the system at their computers anytime you want."

"You could've warned me before that happened," she snapped at him, picking up Pip. "At least you won't vanish on me," she whispered to the Pokemon.

"Pip," he replied, cuddling in closer to her. Julie giggled and kissed him on the top of his head.

Seth couldn't help but stare at the two. "I've seen lots of trainers that had close bonds to their Pokemon, but never anything like this. What are you?"

Julie and Pip looked at him simultaneously. For the first time, Seth noticed how their eyes were exactly the same shade of blue. "What do you mean?" she asked.

"I mean, he talks to you and you act like you know exactly what he's saying!" Seth practically screamed at her.

Julie shrugged. "What makes you think I don't?" She started walking again. "Come on. I want to get this battle with the gym leader over with."

As they walked into Oreburgh, they were surprised to see the streets were deserted. They hurried to the nearest Pokemon Center. When they opened the door, six pairs of frightened eyes greeted them.

The nurse pushed her way through the group of people and grabbed both Seth and Julie by the wrists, pulling them inside. "It's not safe to be wandering around out there right now," she said in hushed tones.

"What's going on here?" Seth asked to be instantly shushed by three of the people.

"The town is in locked down," whispered one woman.

"Some strange people went and took over the mine," added an older man.

"Roark is there now, trying to stop them," finished the nurse.

Julie glanced around the room. "Can anyone tell me what these people looked like?"

One girl stepped forward. "I saw them just as they were entering the town. They were wearing red and white uniforms with a black 'M' on it."

Julie stiffened upon hearing the description. Pip's eyes grew in fear while Julie's flashed briefly with anger. She knelt down next to her Pokemon. She placed her head against his, both of their eyes closed. A moment later, she stood up. Human and Pokemon seemed to have come to a resolve. Julie started for the door, Pip walking calmly beside her.

"Where do you think you're going?!" Seth asked, grabbing her arm.

"To the mine. You're welcome to come or to stay, I don't care," she answered, opening the door. She started running towards the mines. Seconds later, the door opened again and Seth sprinted after her.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5 Chapter 5

"Are you out of your mind?" Seth asked as they crept into the mine. "You heard them tell us Roark was taking care of it. Just let the gym leader do his job and let's get out of here."

"No. Look, you can go back if you want to, but I'm going in," Julie said not even glancing back.

She hid behind a wall of rock and motioned to Seth to hide too. Peeking around the wall, she saw three people standing around, all of them dressed the way the girl had described.

Turning back to Seth, Julie held up three fingers and mouthed, "Ready?" He nodded, and together they came around the wall.

Immediately, the people snapped to attention. One of them stepped forward. "What do you think you kids are doing here?" he said.

A woman came up beside him. "Maybe they're here to play," she sneered.

"Then let's show them how rough Team Might likes to play," the last one chimed in.

Each of them threw out a pokeball, sending a Sneasel, a Houndour, and a Carvanha out into battle.

Pip and Char both sprang forward at once without needing a word from their trainers, ready to fight. Seth leaned over to Julie. "I'll take Sneasel. You take Houndour…"

"And we gang up on Carvanha, got it. Pip, hit Houndour with Bubble!"

"Use Ember on Sneasel, Char!"

Both attacks hit their marks, knocking out Sneasel and Houndour with one hit. Carvanha attacked Char with Rage, but Pip, acting without orders from Julie, used Tackle to knock the Carvanha off its course. The Carvanha whirled and was about to sink its teeth into Pip when Seth ordered Char to use Scratch on the Pokemon. With Pip using Tackle, the Carvanha fainted.

The three members of Team Might were astounded. "We were beaten by two kids…," started the woman.

"Even after we took down the gym leader?" finished the man.

"Let's get out of here!" the one cried. Followed by his compatriots, he took off down one of the tunnels.

"They beat Roark?" Seth said.

Julie stared after the trio. "They must've attacked him the same way as they did to us. I don't think anyone, no matter how good they are, could win a battle three to one."

"We should follow them. They might be going to tell their boss what happened."

"Agreed." The pair ran down the tunnel with Pip and Char scurrying to keep up.

Soon they came to a cavern. Two tunnels stemmed off of it. "Which way do you think they went?" Seth asked.

Pip tugged lightly on Julie's pant leg. "Pip pip," he said. Julie nodded and pulled a pokeball off her belt and called out Chena. Kneeling down next to the Poochyena, she said, "Think you can sniff some people out?"

Chena barked confidently and put her nose to the ground. She wandered around for a moment before finding the trail. She growl-barked and ran down the tunnel to the right with the two humans and their Pokemon running after her.

Chena slowed down as they neared the end of the tunnel. Julie called her back and crept to the edge of it and looked into the room. Inside were Pokemon, mostly Hounddoom and Mightyena, pulling carts full of coal, heading down yet another tunnel. Along one wall of the cave, Machoke and Machamp were digging into it. Only five members of Team Might were in there; the three they had beaten, one shouting orders at the Pokemon, and the last standing over a man who was tightly tied up.

"What should we do?" Julie whispered to Seth.

"How athletic are you?" he asked. Julie made the so-so sign with her hand. "Good enough. There's a ledge just above where the man is. You go and find a way to get down to him. I'll create a diversion. When Team Might is distracted, you go and get him out of here."

Julie nodded. Before she entered the cave, she put on her black jacket. Then she stepped out carefully into it, keeping to the shadows. She pulled herself up as quietly as she could up onto the ledge. She inched along it until she was right above the man. _Come on, where's the distraction?_ she thought.

Seconds later, Seth came strutting into the room. "Howdy, folks! How's it going?" he yelled cheerfully.

"That's one of them!" cried one fellow. "He beat us along with a girl!"

The one who had been guarding the man stepped forward. "I can't believe you were beaten by children. Mia, Aaron, Nick, you three are a disgrace to us. I'll bring this kid down myself," he growled as he stepped forward.

"You got some guts to challenge me. Before we fight, might I have the name of the man I'm about to beat?" Seth smiled innocently. He now had the full attention of everyone in the room. Julie started to lower herself carefully down from the ledge.

The man snorted. "You must be mistaken, for it is you who's going down. Nevertheless, I am Hathor. And you are about to end up like the leader." He pulled out a pokeball. "Bring them down, Murkrow!"

"Let's go, Char!"

The black bird and the red dragon stood glaring at each other. Julie landed just then as softly as she could and crept towards the man. She put a hand on his shoulder. "We're here to help," she whispered to him. She started struggling to untie the knot that bound his hands behind his back. Nobody noticed them; they were too focused on the battle going on in the middle of the cave. Even the Pokemon who had been pulling the carts and digging for the coal stopped to watch.

Seth was holding up well; Char was still going strong while Hathor was on his final Pokemon, a Sableye.

Julie was helping the man get to his feet when Sableye turned around and stared hard at them. Hathor, responding to his Pokemon's sudden change in interest turned around to see Julie and his escaping prisoner. "Get them!" he roared.

Two people grabbed Seth and the other two ran to try to get Julie. Hathor lunged at the man, who ducked and rolled out of the way. He ran across the cavern to a bag. He stood up after pulling something out. "I've sat here doing nothing long enough! You have intruded on these mines, but now I will put an end to it! Cranidos, I choose you!" A blue and gray Pokemon stood before him. "Use Headbutt to seal up that exit!" Cranidos ran and sprang up high enough to slam into the wall above where the Pokemon had been pulled carts of coal out of the cavern. The roof of the tunnel caved in, sealing it off. There was only one way in and out of the cave now.

"You're going to wish you hadn't done that," snarled Hathor. "You're Pokemon are still too weak to pose any threat to mine, Roark!" Seth couldn't help but stare. This was the gym leader?

Roark looked angry but resigned at the same time. It was true. Cranidos had looked tired when he first called him out, and after that Headbutt, he looked exhausted.

"But mine aren't! Pip, use Bubble on Sableye!" Pip, who had been staying as told to behind the rock wall stepped out and attacked, catching Sableye off guard. It fell back in shock. "Pip, get in close and do it again!"

The Piplup sprang forward, it's little legs working to get it as close as possible before Sableye recovered. Char, picking up the spirit from Pip, used Ember on Sableye. It screamed, then fell in faint.

Hathor stared at his Sableye. Quickly, he called it back. "Team Might, run!" he shouted. His teammates let go of Julie and Seth, called back the Pokemon who had been working, and took off down the still open entrance. Hathor started to follow them, but paused. He turned to Julie and Seth. "You won this time, but don't ever challenge us again. You won't be so lucky, especially if you meet up with out leader," he growled.

Julie took a menacing step forward, and although she was a good foot and a half shorter than him, he took a step back. "You can tell your leader to watch out for Juliana Wolff-"

"And Seth Archer!"

"-because we will stop your team in their tracks!" Julie finished. Both Pip and Char put in their own little threats as Hathor took off after his teammates.

"I am impressed," Roark said coming up to stand beside Julie and Seth. "You two make quite the combo."

"You're really Roark, leader of Oreburgh's Gym? It's an honor to meet you, sir!" Seth babbled mindlessly.

Julie rolled her eyes. "Are you and your Pokemon alright?" she asked.

"I'm fine, thanks to you, but my Pokemon will need to go to the Center. We were jumped just as we entered the mines," Roark answered.

"Do you know why they came here?"

Roark thought for a moment. "They wouldn't tell me right out, but I heard Hathor mumbling something about needing more power to complete the project. I can only imagine that they were getting as much coal as they could to finish off this project."

Julie nodded. "Doesn't tell us much, does it? But thanks anyway. I came to the city in hopes of getting to battle you. After a visit to the Center, do you think your Pokemon will be up to it?"

Roark nodded. "Absolutely. But you do know that only one of you will be able to battle me. You can't use your stunning combos when we fight."

"Yup. And she'll be your challenger, not me. I'm only interested in watching this one," Seth said.

"Good. Let's go. The sooner my Pokemon are better, the sooner we can battle," Roark said, smiling broadly.

"Perfect," Julie mumbled.


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6 Chapter 6

"So, how do you want to do this?" Roark asked, grinning way too much for Julie's comfort. "Do you want a single Pokemon battle, or do you want to take on the entire team?"

Julie shrugged, still looking around the gym arena. It was far more impressive then she would've thought. It wasn't fancy, just huge. She imagined there were enough seats there to accommodate the entire Sinnoh region. At the moment, however, there was only one person sitting in the stands. She glanced over at Seth. He waved and gave a thumbs-up. Julie nodded in acknowledgement. "Whatever you'd like," she answered.

"Okay. We'll do a one-on-one. Are you ready?"

"I guess," Julie said, looking down at Pip. Unlike her, he wanted to fight, and looked far more prepared to than she was.

Roark's grin dimmed briefly before coming back even brighter than before. "Come on! If you go into a battle like that, you're bound to lose! Again, are you ready?"

Julie rolled her eyes. "Let's battle," she answered.

"That's what I needed to hear! Let's go, Cranidos!" The gray and blue Pokemon stepped out into the arena.

"You're up, Pip," Julie said and watched with a small smile as her beloved Pokemon ran out into the arena. He stood a few yards away from Cranidos and growled softly, personally challenging the dinosaur Pokemon to a battle.

"Cranidos, Headbutt!"

"Pip, get out of the way and use Bubble!"

Pip did his best to move, but the charging Cranidos was already too close. He clipped Pip on the right side. The Piplup staggered sideways but did his best to obey his trainer's command and fired off a Bubble attack. Miraculously, the attack hit Cranidos, who sustained a decent amount of damage from it.

Roark's smile didn't waver for a second. "Cranidos, Take Down!" Cranidos was far too close for Pip to avoid the attack. It hit Pip squarely in the chest. He fell to the ground, stunned but he hadn't fainted yet. "Cranidos, let's finish it! Headbutt!"

Pip's opponent took his time lining himself up to guarantee a direct hit. After all, Pip was clearly not going anywhere, still struggling to just get to his feet. Julie watched in sadness, but an idea came to her. Of course, following it meant that she would be breaking the vow she had set on herself so long ago, but she knew Pip wanted to win this and he needed her guidance as a trainer to do so. She closed her eyes.

Seth watched as Cranidos charged at Pip for the battle winning attack. Why wasn't Julie giving any orders? She was just standing there looking like she had fallen asleep standing up. He saw her lips move as though she was talking, but no sound came out. Pip nodded slightly as he finally regained his balance, but there was no way he could get out of the way. Seth had figured the Piplup would be afraid as he watched Cranidos lower his head, but instead the blue Pokemon stood there with determination.

When Cranidos was just a few feet away, Julie's eyes shot open. "Peck, now!" Pip hurled himself forward straight into Cranidos. Both Pokemon staggered backward from the impact. Pip tottered for a moment, then set both feet firmly on the ground. He watched as Cranidos hit the floor in a faint.

Roark recalled Cranidos with a blank look on his face. He stared at Julie. Then, he broke into a smile so big Julie was certain his face had split in half. "Julie is the winner!" he shouted with enthusiasm. He strode up to her as she scooped up Pip. "That was one of the best battles I've ever had. And using Cranidos' inertia to increase Pip's Peck attack was absolutely brilliant. I don't think I've ever been this happy to give any trainer the Coal Badge. You are now officially a trainer!"

Julie accepted the gray colored badge, admiring how the light glinted off it. "I'm not sure if I'm now supposed to thank you or what," she said.

Roark merely laughed. "It's not a gift, you've earned it. There's no need for thanking me. But I do expect you to go on and challenge other gyms. Good luck, and come back anytime. I'd love to hear how you and you're team do as you advance up through the ranks."

Julie nodded. "Thank you. I'll do my best to live up to that." She hugged Pip. "We'll do that."

Seth came bounding up. "Oh, she won't try, she will!" he promised for her, throwing an arm around her.

They said their good-byes and exited the gym. Nearing the door, Julie leaned over to Seth. "Don't ever touch me," she hissed at him.

--

Julie stalked ahead of Seth, Pip walking by her side. Seth had been giving her a play-by-play narration of the battle ever since they had left Oreburgh. Quite frankly, it was getting on her nerves. As they started down Rt. 204, she finally turned on him.

"Would you shut up for two seconds?" she snapped. Seth took a step back out of surprise and a little bit of hurt.

Instantly, Pip grabbed her pant leg and yanked hard. She looked sharply down at him, a glare firmly in place. Pip merely shook his head, unaffected by his trainer's anger. "Piplup pip piplup," he said, scorn punctuating his words.

Julie breathed hard, still seething. Then she hung her head. "Sorry."

"Piiip," he said, prompting her.

Julie sighed. "I'm sorry," she said turning to Seth.

"Piplup?" the little Pokemon prodded her on.

"I'm sorry for yelling at you," Julie said, half-sincerely and half-growling.

Pip looked up expectantly at Seth. "Er, apology accepted?" the boy answered, glancing down at Pip. He nodded then happily toddled off, the conflict settled in his mind.

"That was different," Seth said. He looked up at the slowly darkening sky. "It's getting late. Do you want to set up camp for the night?"

Julie shrugged. "Sure. Over there looks good like a good spot." She sounded thoroughly humbled.

Seth looked at her curiously. "Does Pip do this to you often?" he asked, intrigued.

"Anytime I do something he doesn't like," Julie snorted. "Which is often," she added.

"Once more, you seem to understand what he says. Is that true? Can you really understand him?"

"Yeah," Julie answered as she spread out her sleeping bag.

"How can you do that? Can you teach me? I sort of understand Char, but not nearly as good as you do with Pip. I mean, you hold conversations with him. You've gotta tell me how to do it!" Seth rambled.

"Seth…I can't teach you how to do it…" she said, a little uncertain.

Seth, sensing another change in her mood, quieted down. "Why not?" he asked, confused.

Julie sighed. "I'd rather not get into that…"

"More of you're secret past?"

"…Yeah…Come on, Pip! Time for bed!" Pip happily ran to her and crawled into the sleeping bag next to her. She hugged him. "'Night, Seth."

"Good night…" He watched her for a few moments longer before settling down into his own sleeping bag.

_Julie was picked up and put into the car. Her father got in beside her. The chauffeur bowed as he closed the door. Moments later, the engine roared to life and the car started moving._

"_Where are we going, Daddy?" she asked, staring out the tinted windows. Seconds later, she recognized the road. "Are we going to that big building? With the gray walls?" _

_Her father looked down at her. "Yes, we are."_

_Julie looked up at him. "But I don't like that place," she said, her voice wavering._

"_Why not? Don't you like to visit the Pokemon?" he asked._

"_I like the nice ones, but…" Julie looked down at her shoes. "Those people there…And the mean Pokemon…"_

"_But you've never gotten hurt, right?"_

"_No, but…"_

"_Then don't be scared. Now sit back," her father reprimanded her slightly. _

_A few minutes later, the car turned down the driveway. The door opened, and Julie jumped lightly out of the car. Her father took her by the hand and led her up the sidewalk into the building. He nodded as they passed two men dressed in red and white, with a large black 'M' emblazoned on the shirt._

Julie woke with a start. She found her arms wrapped loosely around Pip. Seconds later, he stirred and looked up at her.

"Pip…" he said miserably.

"You had the dream, too, huh? Ya know, that's the third time this week that's happened." She hugged him. "Don't be afraid, Pip. I won't let anyone hurt you. Never."

He put his own little wings around he neck. "Pip pip pip!" he replied, nuzzling into her cheek.

Julie smiled. "I know, Pip, I know. Let's go back to sleep. Love you, Pip." She laid her head back onto the pillow.

"Piplup."


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7 **Yo. I just wanted to tell you readers that during this chapter, and possibly in later ones, that I'll be typing out what Pip says in a manner that we can understand. This doesn't mean that he talks like Meowth of Team Rocket does, it is only what Julie hears when Pip speaks.** Chapter 7"The boss'll see you now," the grunt behind the desk said as she glanced up at Hathor. Then, sympathetically, she added, "The boss is in rare form today. Good luck."

Hathor grimaced but entered the room anyway. The door shut with a bang, which echoed in the dim room. At the far end, his boss was seated behind a large mahogany desk, staring at some papers. Hathor approached him with great respect, despite the fact he hadn't even acknowledged the squad leader. "You wanted to see me, sir?" he asked nervously.

Without looking up, the boss said, "Hathor, you are one of my best men, right? I did make you one of my right hand people because you proved yourself to be worthy, didn't I?"

Hathor shuddered slightly. "Yes, Alar. You did."

Alar suddenly stood up and slammed the desk with his fists, making Hathor jump. "And yet you were defeated by children?!" Alar roared. "I thought you could do better than that!"

Hathor flinched away. "It wasn't just them. The gym leader helped them too!" he protested.

"And who was it that freed the leader?" Alar said, low and threateningly.

"The…children?" the squad leader said sheepishly.

"Exactly!" Alar shouted. "I thought you were capable of that job. That's why this time, I'm going to send Ria for the next job." The boss sighed and sat back down. "Make yourself useful and tell me who foiled you."

"Well, sir…it was a girl, about this tall, maybe fourteen…" Hathor was looking at the ground as he said this and didn't notice Alar's head come up in interest. "And there was a boy too, a little bit older."

"Tell me, what type of Pokemon was the girl using."

Hathor glanced up. "Uh, I don't remember…But she did tell me her name, if you're interested…It might help…"

Alar stared at Hathor. Is he really that dumb? "Yes, I'm interested. Tell me."

"It's…It's Wolff," Hathor stuttered. "That's her last name. I, uh, forgot her first name," he said, scuffing the floor with one shoe.

Hathor put his head in his hands. "You are dismissed. I expect you to double your training. I want to see improvement in you and your team."

"Yes sir!" Hathor saluted and scurried out of Alar's office.

Alar sighed heavily. After a minute, he picked up a phone. "Ria. This is Alar. I want you to keep an eye out for two teenagers. A girl and a boy. They might try to interfere. If they do, I want you to gather as much information about the girl. She could be very important to our mission."

Julie stifled yet another yawn as she walked beside Seth. Pip dragged his feet along behind them, occasionally leaning on Char to keep himself steady. Seth was examining the pokeball that held the newest member to his team, a Shinx, nicknamed Nix. Julie was too tired to comment on his choice of name, something that didn't go unnoticed by Seth.

As Julie stumbled for the third time on nothing, Seth had to comment. "Didn't you sleep at all last night?"

"As much as I could with _you_ snoring next to me," Julie grumbled at him.

"That was a little heartless," he said. _Do I really snore?_

"Whatever. Look, let's just get to Eterna so I can battle its gym leader."

"Well, first we have to go through Floaroma City and then find our way through Eterna Forest. Then you can take on the leader," Seth said brightly, instantly earning himself a withering look from both Julie and Pip.

"I'm not killing you only because you're the one with the map," Julie growled.

"But you can easily take the map from me," Seth answered hesitantly, wondering why he was suggesting this to her.

"Then I suggest you keep a close eye on it," the girl all but snarled.

--

Upon arriving in Floaroma, Julie groaned inwardly. "It looks like a painter went crazy," she said out loud to Seth.

"I think it's kinda pretty," he replied.

Julie shot him a glare. "It makes my eyes hurt."

Seth ignored her. He was getting used to her grouchy ways, realizing that they weren't aimed specifically at him (at least not most of the time). Instead, he concentrated on the flowers that bloomed throughout the town. A light breeze carried their sweet scent. Despite their original tiredness, the city's vibrance seemed to help energize Julie and Pip.

Seth turned to Julie. "I'm heading off to the Pokemart with Char. Do you want to come?"

Julie shrugged. "No. I think I'll just hang out here."

"Suit yourself." Seth looked down at his Charmander. "C'mon."

Julie watched half bored as her traveling companions entered the shop. She felt something touch her leg and looked down to see Pip tapping her knee.

"Pip pip?" he asked and pointed with a stubby wing towards the end of town.

"Sure. We've got nothing better to do." Julie followed her partner as he led the way out of town.

A slow moving river flowed next to the path they were walking along. Pip happily leapt in, diving under the water. Periodically, he would jump out, spray Julie with bubbles, and go back under again.

Julie's trademark scowl began to lessen as she watched the Piplup's antics. Soon she was giggling hysterically and popping as many of the bubbles as she could.

After a while, Pip came to shore toddled to her. _"It's good to see you smile. You hardly do it anymore," _he said. After a moment, he tilted his head, giving her a quizzical look. _"What's wrong? Ever since we left Meg's, you've gotten more snippy."_

Julie knelt down next to her friend and put her hand on his head. "Oh, Pip…" She looked up at the sky. "It's just that we…we…"

"_We were safer with Meg," _Pip finished for her.

Julie's head snapped down to look into his eyes. "Exactly! I had hoped the Team Might would've forgotten all about me, maybe even had disbanded. After all, it's been eight years. But they're still at large. And they're probably even more dangerous than before!"

Pip picked up on her fear. He cuddled into her, and she wrapped her arms around him._ "You' re afraid they'll catch us."_

Julie nodded. "We were lucky that Hathor didn't recognize us, but how long will that luck last? And we're really in trouble if Alar is still boss!"

Julie shuddered and closed her eyes, leaning her head against Pip's. Visions flashed against her eyelids until her mind settled on one memory.

--

Julie cowered in a corner of the white room, her little hands clenched tight, as she watched the Houndour stalk towards her. "Call for help!" an angry and frustrated voice shouted at her.

"Help! Somebody!" the girl cried. She looked around wildly, frantically trying to find a way out even though she knew there wasn't one. She spotted a Lombre standing in the room not too far away. "Lombre, please! Help me!" she begged, but the Pokemon merely turned away from her. The Houndour was closing in. It snapped at the air. Julie stared into its eyes. It leaned back onto its haunches, preparing to leap for her. Julie's heart thudded to a halt.

Shouts of alarm went up all around the room. "Houndour, enough!" "Yet another failed test!" "When will we get it right?"

Julie curled up into a defensive ball, sobbing quietly. She barely noticed that someone picked her up. "Is the new one ready yet?" a voice asked.

"Just about," another answered.

"Good. We'll try again tomorrow."

--

Julie felt as though something was tugging at her, pulling her away from the memory. She opened her eyes and leaned back onto her heels, embarrassed to find her cheeks wet with tears.

Pip placed a wing on her chest. "Please don't be sad. As long as I'm here, you don't have to be worried or scared." He reached up with his other wing and wiped away a stray tear.

Julie hugged him tightly, still trying to shake off the memories. "Thank you for calling me back," she sniffled.

Pip blinked. "It was the least I could do. I mean, you shared that dream with me last night. Remember: I feel what you feel, just like you feel what I feel. What were you remembering?"

"The test that came before you," she answered. "It was the scariest one. Never before had the Houndour gotten so close to me." Pip nodded in sympathy.

"Hey, Julie! There you are!" Girl and Pokemon looked up to see Seth running towards them with Char at his heels. "There's trouble! It seems that Team Might have taken over the windmills that are near here. Did you see anything? Hey, are you crying?"

Julie stood up angrily. "It's none of your business," she snapped, embarrassed that someone else had seen her like this. She roughly wiped away the rest of the tears, leaving little red marks on her cheeks.

Pip looked up at her. "You know, you could really be nicer to him. He's not a bad guy."

"Shut up," Julie half snarled at him.

Seth took a step back. "What? I didn't say anything!"

"Not you; him!" the girl pointed wildly at Pip.

Seth looked down at the Piplup, wondering if he was affected by the fact that his trainer suddenly yelled at him. Surprisingly, Pip was fine. In fact, he seemed to be laughing.

"I do not!" Julie cried. "Look, it doesn't matter. There's trouble and we have to fix it. So sober up and let's go!" She turned and stomped away.

"Uh, Julie? The windmills are that way…" Seth pointed in the other direction.

Julie, seething with anger, stalked past him, Char, and Pip. "Keep you're mouth shut," she growled at Pip, who was still giggling.


	8. Chapter 8

**Sorry. It's been a while huh? I've been a little bogged down with schoolwork. **

**A/N: There will be a slightly offensive word in this chapter. No swearing, just the word "crap." If you are not happy about this, just pretend you never saw it.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon, unless you count my personal universe in which I own everything I'm obsessed with. Sadly, that universe doesn't exist…But someday it will! Mwahahaha!…Um…Yeah…Never mind…**

Chapter 8

Seth and Julie were crouched down behind a boulder, watching the activity that was going on outside the building. A large green van was parked outside it. Two men came out of the building carrying something big and cylindrical between them. They were grunting from the effort. One opened up the van's trunk and both of them maneuvered the thing into it. Another cylinder was already inside, and there seemed to be room for one more. Once they got the object in, they closed the hatch and leaned against the van, trying to catch their breath.

"How many more of these do we have to bring out?" huffed one.

"Just one more," the other puffed.

"Good. I can't believe this is what they've got us doing. The flyer said working for Team Might would be a glamorous thing."

"I know. This is not the picture the boss painted for us new recruits."

"We better get back inside before Ria comes out and yells at us."

Julie and Seth waited for a minute to make sure no one else would come out before abandoning their hiding place. "Good. More friends from Team Might. Shall we go say hi?" Seth quipped to Julie, still expecting to get a laugh even though he knew she rarely ever smiled, much less laugh.

He glanced over at her. Indeed, Julie's lips were pulled back into a growl, her fists clenching and unclenching. He took a step away from her, fully expecting her to explode like a volcano. Char mimicked him.

Pip, on the other hand, scooted closer to his life-long friend. _"I know you're angry, but standing out here won't help anyone. We have to go in and confront Ria,"_ Pip said soothingly, although he shuddered at saying the name "Ria."

Her eyes still glinting with anger, Julie relaxed enough to start forward toward the building. Seth scurried behind her. "Uh, Julie? Maybe we should be careful, maybe keep a low profile…" he hissed at her.

"What does it matter? They'll find out we're here sooner or later," Julie said loudly. She grabbed the door handle and yanked it open violently. Only Seth grabbing it stopped it from slamming against the wall. Julie, completely oblivious, marched up the stairs, ready to confront anyone head on.

"I swear, she's going to get us killed someday," Seth muttered to Char.

"First off, I can hear you," Julie said without looking back. "And second, I'm not forcing you to follow me." They reached the top of the stairs. Julie stomped into the room, making as much noise as she could without talking. Seth practically tiptoed in behind her.

Three people stood in the room: the two they saw outside and a woman dressed in a white shirt and a red skirt. Next to them was another large cylinder that was hooked up with some wires to a console. All three whirled to around and watched as the blue-and-black clad girl stormed in. The woman stepped back and stared in amazement as Julie approached.

"Ria," Julie all but spat, coming to a stop ten feet away.

Ria blinked before regaining her composure. She leaned back against a counter. "Juliana, it's nice to see you again," she said smoothly.

"Cut the crap. Why is it that you, and the rest of Team Might, keep rearing your ugly heads wherever we go?" Julie demanded.

The grunts visibly recoiled from Julie, but the words rolled right off of Ria. "Touchy. Use your brain, Juliana. Where have you seen us?" she said. She glanced back at the cylinder. _Still not enough power, _she thought. Although her face wasn't showing it, she was scared of the fierceness of the girl.

Julie glowered for a moment before snapping, "At the coal mines and here. You're obviously looking for power, but I want to know what it is you want it for."

"Ah, that's a secret. But I'll give you a clue. It's for a project that we wouldn't need if you hadn't gotten away all those years ago. You know, we could stop all of this if you would just come with us. Then we would leave all of these people alone and everything would be fine and dandy."

Julie crossed her arms and rolled her eyes. "Yeah, right. Everything will be fine until you have me use that power. Then the world will fall into chaos." Julie took up a battle-ready stance. "Now, I'll only say this once. Leave here now."

"I'm afraid I can't do that, Juliana. You and your boyfriend should leave before someone gets hurt," Ria said, taking out a pokeball.

"Not on your life. Pip, ready?" Immediately Pip, who was as furious as Julie, stepped forward.

"Very well. Flaaffy will make short work of you," Ria said casually as she called out her Flaaffy.

Seth, who had scooted to Julie's side, whispered to her, "Maybe you should switch out Pip for Chena."

Julie shook her head, "I couldn't even if I wanted to. This is Pip's battle as much as it is mine. Pip, Peck!"

"Flaaffy, Thundershock!" The electric Pokemon let loose a bolt of lightning, but Pip's momentum worked up by a combination of his attack and his fury carried him out of range of the attack. He hit Flaaffy hard, managing to get in a few more hits than usual before springing away.

"Flaaffy, Thunderwave!"

"Pip, Bubble, then get out of the way!" Julie called, hoping Bubble would slow Flaaffy down enough for Pip to avoid the attack.

Luck was not with Pip, because the Thunderwave hit its mark. Pip was stopped in his tracks. He struggled to move, but it felt as though his body wasn't listening to him. In fact, he wasn't even sure if it was a part of him anymore. Ria smiled as Flaaffy sat before Pip as cool as ice.

"Pip," Julie said uncertainly. Her Pokemon turned his head enough so she could see his eyes. Julie knew instantly that it would be useless to try and switch her Pokemon out. Pip wouldn't leave the battlefield. He was too proud to turn his back on a fight like this.

Ria laughed coldly. "Flaaffy, you can relax. We have all the time in the world now. Tackle."

Flaaffy raced in and knocked Pip aside. He squeaked as he hit the floor and rolled. It broke Julie's heart to watch, but the brave little creature struggled back to his feet and waited for his next command. _He believes in me, _Julie thought, _He believes in me enough to wait for my commands instead of doing his own thing. _Julie had to find a way to help him. Ria watched with a smug look on her face. How Julie hated it.

Suddenly, an idea dawned on her. Ria thought she had already won this battle. Julie could use this to her and Pip's advantage. She knew she had to reuse her power. _Wow, twice now within two days. A new record, _she thought bitterly. Still, she closed her eyes and reached out to him with her heart.

_~Pip? Can you hear me?~_

_~Yes, Julie.~_

_~You noticed Ria thinks she's already won? I'm not going down without a fight, and I know you won't either. You need to wait for Flaaffy to get close again. Once it's as close as you think it can get, use Peck. If we're lucky, it will stun both it and Ria. Then you can finish it off with Bubble. Will you do it, Pip?~_

_~You know I have no choice.~_

_~Thank you, Pip.~_

Julie opened her eyes in time to see Flaaffy charging at Pip with another Tackle attack. She prayed that the plan would work. Just as it hit Pip, Pip made his move. He staggered backward but Pip landed a strong Peck attack. Flaaffy stumbled away, amazed that his paralyzed foe had actually landed an attack. Instantly, Pip launched a close range Bubble attack, sending Flaaffy flying. Flaaffy shakily got to its feet, only to have them crumple. It fell to the floor, fainted.

Ria stared in awe. She had just lost to a young girl in a battle she should've had the upper hand in. Quickly she called Flaaffy back. Turning to the grunts, she said, "We're leaving _now._"

"But, the battery-," protested one, but Ria cut him off.

"Leave it. Between the coal and the other two, we might have enough power. We have to get out of here now. Go!" The grunts took off down the stairs.

Ria went to follow, but Julie stood in her way. "Just a few things," the girl said. "A: Seth is not my boyfriend! B: Don't call me Juliana; my name is Julie. And C: Don't mess with me." She stepped aside. "Now get out of here. And if I ever see any of you again, I will not be this merciful." Ria took off down the stairs.

Julie knelt down next to Pip. She leaned over him. "Are you okay-ahh!" she recoiled as Pip's body suddenly glowed white. It grew brighter and brighter until Julie had to shield her eyes. Soon, the light subsided. Julie lowered her arm to now be looking directly into the eyes of a bigger Pokemon. "Pip?" she said uncertainly.

Seth leaned over her, staring at Pip. "Julie, Pip's evolved! He's now a Prinplup!"

Julie raised up her hand. The Prinplup leaned into it. _"Yes, Julie, it's still me. And I am okay,"_ he said, his voice slightly deeper than before. Still, his eyes held the same look of love. Julie hugged him close to her. He wrapped his own wings around her, happy to find he could now reach around her shoulders.

Seth smiled down at her. "So, now that he's a Prinplup, are you going to start calling him 'Prin'?"

Julie punched him in the leg. Although it hurt, Seth was pleasantly surprised; usually she hit a lot harder than that.

-----

Outside, Ria leapt into the passenger seat of the van. The grunt at the wheel slammed his foot down on the gas pedal and the van took off. Ria pulled out a cell phone. "Alar. We weren't able to get enough power before being caught. Stop yelling at me, otherwise I might not tell you the good news. Dear little Juliana's back."

-----

That night, Julie sat next to the campfire. She gazed into the core of the fire. She poked one of the logs with a stick, studying how the flames reacted, how they danced as swirled, sending up little bursts of embers. Pip leaned against her, content to just be near her. Seth watched her from where he stood leaning against a tree.

Finally, he couldn't bear the silence any longer. "Since Pip is too big for you to carry now, are you going to get him a pokeball?"

"No!" Julie said sharply. After a moment, she added gently, "Neither of us could stand that."

Silence. Seth came forward and sat across from her. "Julie…?"

Julie sighed as she tossed the stick into the fire. "You're wondering about me again. About how I know Ria and that whole group." She paused. She turned her head just enough so that she could see Pip out of the corner of her eye. He nodded slightly. "I might as well tell you. Then you can decide for yourself if you want to continue on with me and Pip.

"Team Might wants to find a way to take over this world. But in order to do so, they'd need to find a way to get around the Legendary Pokemon. Don't look at me like that; they're real. They guard us, the Pokemon, and all of Earth. After several failed attempts, they realized that they could not defeat or capture the Legendaries. They tried to befriend them, but the God-like creatures were too intelligent to be tricked. What Team Might needed was someone who could control these beings, someone who could bend their will.

"I am the daughter of a Team member. The Team as a whole decided to use me to complete their goal. They ran numerous tests on me, trying to find a way to give me the ability to control any Pokemon. It took them 28 tries, but they finally succeeded. That test was the one performed with Pip."

Julie paused, sniffling slightly. She was crying, but she refused to raise her head and allow Seth to see. Pip pressed himself closer against her as she continued.

"The ability given to me was, in addition to being able to understand the speech of any Pokemon, was the ability to speak directly to their heart. When I call to their heart, it is a silent matter and a full conversation can take place in seconds. It forms a strong bond between the one I talk to and myself. On the downside, the bond is so strong that being to far from any Pokemon I call to hurts us both. That's why I can't use a pokeball on Pip. Also, speaking directly to a Pokemon's heart removes its ability make its own decision to obey or disobey. It can only do as you command it to.

"Soon after I had made that connection, they took Pip away from me. It felt as though my heart was being ripped out. When I could no longer stand it, I went in search of him. My heart literally led me to him. That was when I discovered what they were planning to do with me. Even at age five, I understood enough to know we had to get out of there. Before we left, I stole something from them. I took this pendant." Julie pulled the crescent-shaped stone from inside her shirt. Even in the orange glow of the firelight, it maintained its white color, shimmering slightly. "I have no idea why I took it. I guess I thought it was really pretty. I was five, after all." She slid the stone back into her shirt.

"We easily got away, but we didn't go too far because I was too scared. I watched through a window as they tried to repeat the test on another member, but it didn't work. Ria's heart was too corrupted for the injection to work on her. It was the same case with all of the others. That's when their leader, Alar, decided they needed to get me back. That was enough to scare me into getting away.

"After a few days of wandering around aimlessly, sticking to forests and caves, we came across a researcher. Pip, who has always been an excellent judge of character, knew we would be safe with her. When he went to her, I was more or less dragged along. Megan immediately took pity on us, and she became my new family. Pip and I felt safe with her. We stayed glued to her side from then on out. Until she decided I needed to see the world and sent me off with Pip and Chena. Then you and I met." Julie placed her hand on Pip's head. "Now that Team Might know that I'm still alive, they'll be hunting for me. If you continue on with me, you'll be putting yourself, Char, and the others in a lot of danger."

Seth sat for a moment thinking about all he had been told. "I'm sticking with you," he said at last.

Julie looked up in surprise. The firelight was reflected off of the tears that still lingered on her cheeks. "Are you crazy? What did I just tell you? If you follow me, you could get hurt, maybe even killed!"

Seth stood up and stepped around the fire. He knelt down next to the girl. "I'm not leaving you. You're going to need all the help you can get now. I can't just leave you to fend for yourself. You need us." Julie lowered her eyes to see Char standing next to his trainer with a look of determination. She looked back up into Seth's eyes. She now realized just how protective he was of her. "I'm not leaving you," he repeated.

Julie smiled. She had never realized she had such a good friend. Even though she had rarely treated him like a friend, he had still found something to be loyal to. She made a silent vow right then and there to treat him as a true friend. "Thanks, Seth," she said softly. "You too, Char."

"Anytime," Seth and Char said simultaneously, in their respective languages, of course.


	9. Author's Note and Apology

**Author's Note**

Hi guys. I'm really sorry about not updating for so long, but I have a really good reason. You know Toffee the guinea pig from Summer, Winter, and Sky? Well, she's real, modeled after my guinea pig, and she's really sick. About 2 months ago, she was diagnosed with a cyst in her right side, which had to be surgically removed. On the day of the surgery (one month after discovering the cyst), the vet found out that there was a second cyst in her left side and that the original one had doubled in size. That meant the surgery took almost twice as long as it should have been and that the incision had to be enlarged.

After the surgery, she ate fine for a few days and then stopped eating. So now I have to kinda force feed her this stuff called Critical Care, which has all the nutrients a piggy, needs. She started up eating by herself again, but I still have to give her this stuff.

Also last week while I was giving her a "sponge bath" (she sort of needed it, and the surgery incision hadn't quite healed yet so I didn't want to give her a real bath and risk opening it up), I found these abscesses on her front feet. They turned out to be what is known as "bumblefoot," which is an infection of the foot caused by when a guinea pig doesn't move around at all, which she had been sitting in one place in her cage for the most part (I think the incision still hurts her a little bit). Bumblefoot is an infection that if left untreated would infect the bones of her legs and the limb ultimately would have to be amputated. Unfortunately, the stress of another surgery would probably result in Toffee dying on the table. If the infection spread into her legs, I think I would euthanize her, because I'd rather have her pass on in my arms than on a cold steel table.

Luckily, according to the vet, we caught the infection in an early enough stage that it is still treatable. She's been put on antibiotics and pain meds again, and her paws need to be wrapped up (which kinda make her look like she's wearing boxing gloves). So far it seems to be working, and the swelling has appeared to have gone down, but she still needs the bandages and the meds.

I will be continuing the stories once all of this passes, but at the moment I have guinea pigs on the mind more than plots points.


	10. Chapter 9

Sorry it took me so long to get back to this. I've been dealing with writer's block. I think it's from having so many stories going at once…Not that I'm going to change that…And I miss my piggy (she took a turn for the worse after the surgery and we had to put her down…Sniff…But now I have two new idiots to take care of, so I'm feeling better.)

Just to let everyone know, I'm going to fast forward a little bit. I could follow the same path as the game, but I don't feel like writing out a whole bunch of battles and details that really don't matter all that much to the plot. Hope you don't mind!

Chapter 9"Ack. I hate caves," Seth said."First off, it's a tunnel-" Julie started.

"You are such a nitpicker."

"-and second, there's no other way around. We have to go this way to get to Celestic City." She patted her leg lightly. "Come on, Pip."

"_Woof,"_ Pip said sarcastically. Julie shot a teasing glance at him and ruffled the feathers on his head, getting a growl in response.

"Oh, stop it, you. You used to love these games."

"_I was young and naïve," _he answered.

"Spoilsport."

"_Sorry,"_ Pip said quickly, touching a wing to her hand in apology.

Julie giggled and smoothed out his feathers. "So, Seth, why do you hate caves so much?" she asked, starting off into the tunnel.

"You said it was a tunnel!"

"Fine, tunnel. We've done this before without you having problems. What's the difference this time?"

"The others were well lit and large. This one's dark and narrow," he replied, nervously following her.

Julie stopped short and turned around in mock surprise. "You mean the fearless Seth is claustrophobic?"

"Julie, this isn't funny! I really am afraid of it!"

"Alright, calm down. Look, send in Char ahead of you. The flame on his tail will help to light the way," Julie said.

"I can't. He's afraid too," Seth said, turning red. As though to prove it, Char backed up and wrapped his arms around his trainer's legs.

"You've got to be kidding me," Julie muttered. She sighed and held out her hand. "Come on. We're going to get you through this, one way or another. Pip, you get Char."

"Julie, I'm not so sure about this…"

"Oh, would you just come on?!" The girl grabbed his hand and started to drag him through the tunnel. Pip got behind Char and pushed him using brute force after the humans.

"Julie, no! This is crazy! Let me go!" Seth howled at her, his voice bouncing off the walls, creating frightening echoes. He squeezed his eyes shut and continued on in his protests. "Nononononononononononono!"

All of a sudden, something was missing. The echo was gone. He opened one eye to find himself standing in the bright sunshine. Julie was standing a few feet away from him with a sly smirk on her face. "You can let go of my hand now."

"Heh heh," Seth chuckled weakly, but he didn't let go.

"Um, Seth? My…hand?"

"Huh? Oh, oh yeah," he stammered dropping it. They stood in awkward silence for a moment before Seth turned away. "Let's go. Celestic shouldn't be too much farther away." Seth led the way down the trail with Char right behind.

Pip came up to stand beside Julie, who was still staring at her traveling companion. _"He likes you."_

"So I gathered."

"_And you like him."_

"Oh, shut up."

Pip giggled. _"See? I can still play our games."_

"Goody. Let's go before he gets himself into trouble."

"_Aww, she's concerned about him,"_ Pip said playfully.

"Go away, would you?" Julie growled. She hurried to catch up with Pip still laughing at her.

-----

"Wow. Celestic City is a lot smaller than I thought it would be," Julie said. Indeed, there were only a handful of buildings. In the center of town, there were what appeared to be ancient ruins of a cave of some sort.

Julie walked up to them. On either side of the cave entrance there were old and faded paintings.

"They look like legendary Pokemon," Seth said in awe of the size of the paintings.

"Dialga and Palkia," Julie breathed.

"Yes, that is who they are. You must study the old legends very carefully," an old but kindly voice said. Both turned to see an old woman approaching them. She was leaning heavily on a came but gave off an aura that demanded respect from others.

"Actually, I know very little of the legends," Julie said bashfully. "I must have heard their names somewhere else."

"Still, you knew them, and that in itself is impressive. You both seem like good people. You may go in, if you want to."

"Thank you, but what do you mean?" Seth asked.

"There have been some strange people around here lately. I don't trust them in the least. As the elder of the city, I denied them access to the cave. But you children seem as though you won't do any damage to anything. Here, use this otherwise you won't be able to see two inches in front of your noses." The elder handed Julie a flashlight, giving her a kind smile.

"Thank you. And I promise, we won't damage anything in there."

"I trust you. I hope you learn a lot from the paintings," the elder said. She gave them a final nod before hobbling off.

Julie flicked on the flashlight and shined it into the cave. "Let's go, Seth. Seth?" She looked over to see him leaning slightly away from the cave. "Oh, for the love of…Seth, don't make me drag you in here kicking and screaming again."

"Okay, I'm coming, I'm coming."

Julie marched into the cave with Pip at her side. Seth and Char stood outside, both trembling at the thought of going into the darkness.

Julie glanced over her shoulder and rolled her eyes. "Fine, you two can stay outside. Me and Pip will check this out."

Seth and Char watched the light of the flashlight disappear as she rounded a corner in the cave. "Be careful…" he called. "She'll be fine, right?" He looked down at the Charmander, who shrugged and promptly sat down. Seth sighed and sat down next to him. "Wish I wasn't such a big chicken…" he mumbled.

In the cave, Julie walked after the slightly bouncing flashlight beam. She rounded a second corner, and the tunnel suddenly opened up into an enormous cavern. On the far side was a painting of a mandala design, and making up the center of it were three Pokemon in a circle around the two Pokemon that were on the cave entrance. (A/N: Yes, I know in the game it only has three dots around one large one, but I'm using poetic license here. Deal.)

As she got closer, the designs making up the mandala became clearer. It was basically split up into four repeating quadrants, each separated by what looked like a lightning bolt. Within each section were swirls that formed themselves into symbols resembling flames, water, leaves, and wind. Around the outer edge were more symbols resembling suns and moons. Julie unconsciously touched the stone that hung around her neck. Suddenly, she felt uncomfortable in the cavern. Something was very wrong, she could feel it. She turned and ran out of the cave with Pip stumbling after her.

Seth and Char looked up in surprise as Julie burst out of the cave, blinking rapidly in the bright sunlight. "We're going now," she said shortly and began up the steps out of the city.

"What happened?" Seth asked springing to his feet.

Julie shook her head. "No time to explain. Something, no, someONE is in danger! We have to go help it!" And with that, she took off running.

Seth pounded down the road after her. Pip was amazingly able to keep up with her, which Seth was never able to understand. The boy had long strong legs while the Pokemon only had little stumpy legs, but it was always Seth getting left behind in the dust. Julie shot around a corner in the path when it happened.

An explosion shook the ground, causing flocks of Starlys to take off from their roosts in trees. Seth rounded the bend in the path to find Julie kneeling on the ground with her face buried in Pip's feathers, her shoulder shaking from crying. It was rare to see her like this, so defeated so quickly, and it scared Seth. He approached her slowly and was about to touch her shoulder but hesitated, wondering if she was scared enough to lash out if he touched her.

Without looking up, she choked out the words "I was too late."

Seth looked up in the direction of where the sound of the explosion had come from to see smoke billowing up over the treetops. Suddenly, anger flashed through him. There was no doubt in his mind about who was behind it. _Team Might. _The same people that had first put his friend in pain and had continued to torment her all these years. He clenched his fists. "No, Julie," he said with such force as to cause the girl to crane her head around to look up at him. "It's not too late. They might still be there. If we hurry, we can still catch them. You with me?"

Julie stared up into his eyes for a moment before her natural stubbornness returned to her and her face mirrored Seth's look of determination. She nodded sharply and got back up and ran even faster than before, knowing that she had to race if she was ever to get there in time. She grabbed Pip's wing and practically flew over the ground with the Prinplup in tow. Seth was now having an even tougher time keeping up, but her spirit and her will to help whoever was in trouble inspired him to push himself harder than he ever had before.

She disappeared into the crowds of Veilstone City, not slowing down at all. She blasted down the road, ignoring trainer and Pokemon alike, focused solely on her mission. Seth lost sight of her as she rounded the bend heading towards Lake Valour.

When he finally caught up, Seth found Julie standing with her hands on her hips in front of a decent sized crew of Team Might Grunts. Four of them were hanging on tightly to a net with some sort of blue Pokemon trapped inside. Standing in front of them all was Ria, looking quite pleased with herself. "What took you so long, Juliana? I was beginning to wonder if you had given up."


End file.
